Tag Archives: Lent

Lent Day 13: repentance

04 Thursday Mar 2021

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1 Blessed is the one
whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
2 Blessed is the one
whose sin the Lord does not count against them
and in whose spirit is no deceit.
3 When I kept silent,
my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
4 For day and night
your hand was heavy on me;
my strength was sapped
as in the heat of summer.
5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you
and did not cover up my iniquity.
I said, “I will confess
my transgressions to the Lord.”
And you forgave
the guilt of my sin. – Psalm 32

Lent is a season of repentance. We don’t like to think about repentance because that means we must look at our sinfulness. And yet, that is exactly what we are called to do. Repent.

Today’s psalm highlights the blessings in this way of life that searches for those deeds, words, thoughts, even motives, displeasing to God—and owns them mournfully before him.

The first blessing is forgiveness. The repentant are the forgiven (vv. 1–5). In the psalm, this forgiveness is confirmed by David’s deliverance (vv. 6–7). Let’s be honest, David struggled in life. Troubles had surrounded him like mighty waters. It seems then that David doesn’t just look for his circumstances to change; he offers himself to be changed through his repentance. And the deliverance he receives confirms the forgiveness of the guilt of his sin. Would that we all approach our troubles with such priorities! The repentant are the forgiven—and in that forgiveness is our deliverance.

Another blessing in repentance is who David is becoming through it. This is alluded to in verse 8 of our psalm. He is becoming someone intimate with the teaching and counsel of the Lord, growing in his will.. Our repentance now has everything to do with who we are becoming for tomorrow. The seeds of your future self are in your repentance today.

This tomorrow that we repent toward includes the age to come, the new earth. The season of Lent comes to its end on Easter Sunday. In the resurrection of Jesus, we are promised our own future resurrection! Who will we be on that day? We learn from Jesus’s resurrection that there is an organic unity between our present and future selves. Just like the crucifixion marks of his resurrected body (John 20:20), the wisdom Jesus gained in learning obedience became part of his future self, a wisdom by which he leads us into salvation (Hebrews 5:8–9), enthroned on high.

Therefore, learning obedience through repentance today, we are being shaped for our future life. Who you are today affects who you will become in the day of Christ’s tomorrow. Every confession of deceit today promises a truer you tomorrow, or certainly a deeper enjoyment of your true you!

So let us journey on in the blessed life of repentance. It brings us the assurance of forgiveness and the promise of who we become through it!

Today’s devotional was written by Rev. Heino Blaauw.

Lent Day 12: Separate No More

03 Wednesday Mar 2021

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My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?
O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer;
and by night, but find no rest.
Yet you are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.
In you our ancestors trusted;
they trusted, and you delivered them.
To you they cried, and were saved;
in you they trusted, and were not put to shame. — Psalm 22

Separation sucks! It doesn’t matter if you are an introvert or extrovert, long term separation sucks. This week, in Texas, all mandates were lifted, paving the way for people to do what people naturally do — fellowship. We were not created to be isolated. We need human contact: hugs, touch, holding hands. The longer we go without it, the deeper we fall into a pit of hopelessness.

Just like human beings are created to be together, we are also created to be joined with God. Psalm 22 is about a heart that feels separated from God. It reflects a time when God doesn’t feel close. He doesn’t seem to care. How we feel often conflicts with the truth we know about God. The lyrics of a Lauren Daigle song (“You Say”) share this struggle:

You say I am loved when I can’t feel a thing
You say I am strong when I think I am weak
You say I am held when I am falling short
When I don’t belong, oh, you say that I am yours
And I believe.

Feelings tell us God has forgotten us; faith reminds us of his powerful love. Feelings fool us into thinking God has hidden his face from us; faith convicts our hearts that he will never leave or forsake us. Feelings are fickle and often crush the spirit; faith gives hope.

Jesus deliberately quotes Psalm 22 from the cross, beginning with feelings of separation, but as he suffers, the entire psalm runs through his mind until his heart hears, “He has not hidden his face from him, but answered him when he called” (v. 24). Jesus clings to faith, not feelings, in his trials.

If you are feeling separated from God, now is the perfect time to reach out and say yes to God!

Lent Day 11: Soul-Lifting!

02 Tuesday Mar 2021

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To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. …
Make me to know your ways, O Lord;
teach me your paths. …
Be mindful of your mercy, O Lord, and of your steadfast love,
for they have been from of old.
Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions;
according to your steadfast love remember me,
for your goodness’ sake, O Lord! — Psalm 25

I am beginning week two of a new eating program. It’s really tough. No processed sugars. Very few calories. And none of my goto comfort foods. But really this is a perfect time to do such a change for, you see, Lent is a time for a soul lift. Psalm 25 begins with a declaration of trust in God before going on to name several issues with which we can identify.

“To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. … in you I trust” (vv. 1–2). The Hebrew word for soul is nephesh, which represents the whole self, not just the soul. My body and soul have both been troubled for many days. So it’s time for surrender. As we journey through Lent, it is good to affirm the foundation of our faith, to praise our God who guides us along life’s paths that are not always straight and well groomed. And let’s be honest, nothing about the past year has been straight and well groomed.

Psalm 25 is an acrostic poem with the first letter in most lines beginning with succeeding letters of the Hebrew alphabet. There are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet and 22 verses to this psalm. The use of the acrostic helps the psalmist paint a broad landscape with pathways that are detoured and overgrown with shame, malicious acts, a troubled heart, entrapment, loneliness, and affliction. Within these paths is written an instructional “ABC’s” of God’s teachings, forgiveness, and salvation. For every trouble or obstacle, there is an affirmation of God’s grace!

It is much too easy to be focused on the difficulties we face. But God’s endless grace can carry us through each situation, emotion, or misstep.

So, lift up your soul! Give thanks and praise for God’s steadfast love and trustworthiness. He beckons you to leave your burdens in His hands.

Lent Day 10

01 Monday Mar 2021

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How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and day after day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?

Look on me and answer, Lord my God.
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death,
and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

But I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
I will sing the Lord’s praise,
for he has been good to me. — Psalm 13

In the Book of Psalms, 67 are psalms of lament—songs that cry out to God in burden or complaint. In fact, these songs of angst make up the majority of Psalms. Although there are words of address, confession, trustworthiness, petition, and hints foreshadowing salvation within these songs, it was suffering, not praise, that inspired these songs of the heart.

As a trauma therapist, I have seen a lot of suffering. The human condition is fraught with illness, decline, anxiety, isolation, fear, confusion, and ultimately, death. It is in these moments that we, like the psalmist, seek God’s face. Even those who have strayed from God secretly cry out in hopes of seeing God’s face to bring about healing. As we enter into the one year anniversary of this pandemic, I have heard from many clients a form of lament. They are enveloped in pain. Add to that the trials of human life – including death, and it can seem a true path of despair.

In these dark times, though the soul still retains its capacity for faith, hope, and meaningful encounter, there is still an urgent need within us to cry out to God in complaint. The hefty inclusion of psalms of lament in the biblical canon assures us that God not only welcomes our complaints, but also that these are music to his ears. Imagine that: a God who does not feel defensive when we shout at him in honest agony! Rather, ours is a God who wrestles with us through pressing anxiety to urgent prayer and, ultimately, to expectant rejoicing.

Lent is a time for wrestling within as we wander through our wildernesses. It is a time of lamenting the felt separation from our Creator. It is also a time of coming to a deeper experience of the One who has called us to himself. In the world today, we are encouraged to bury any suffering within, ignoring the necessary wrestling we must do with the deep woes of our soul. God says, “No!” God encourages the wilderness because that’s where we learn to rely upon his strength.

My hope for all of us during this season is that we are able to live honestly before God and find within us the boldness to struggle with God so deeply that at times, only a well-crafted poem of complaint will suffice.

Lent Day 9: Beside Still Waters

27 Saturday Feb 2021

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The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff—they comfort me. — Psalm 23

Do you ever feel like the world is too noisy? Too demanding of every moment? There are meetings to be at, functions to attend, demands to be met, and if we’re not careful, our calendars and busyness can separate us from God.

Psalm 23 invites us to take a step or two away from the demands of the world. The psalmist’s words invoke an image of peace, rest, and tranquility taken next to a stream of quiet beauty—an image that has resonated with souls over millennia.

I find soul rejuvenation when I’m near a large body of water like a lake or the ocean. And though I don’t always have the means of picking up and physically traveling to a body of water, I do have the ability of becoming lost in Psalm 23. Scripture can do that for us. It can take us into a place of complete safety if we only allow His word to enter into our soul.

I encourage you to take a moment and ask our Good Shepherd to lead your spirit next to a place of green pastures and quiet waters—so that he may restore your soul. In this time of pandemics and quarantines and riots and divisions, we NEED restoration more than ever. God has invited you. Are you ready to say, “Yes?”

Lent 8: Worship Freely

25 Thursday Feb 2021

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We are hungry, so we eat. We are tired, so we sleep. We answer when our name is called. There are emails and phone calls requesting a reply. There are schedules to be readjusted in light of unexpected events. There is so much to respond to that we often have to prioritize what is worthy of a response.

When the magi in the gospel of Matthew saw an unusual star that aligned with an Old Testament prophecy about the coming of the king, they prioritized their response (Num. 24:17). They cleared their schedules, packed their bags, and set out to find the child. It is unclear how much the magi really knew about who this baby was that they found in Bethlehem, but when they saw him, they bowed down and worshiped him. Their action tells us that they believed this child was one worthy of their praise. Their worship was a reaction for beholding God’s perfect self-revelation, Jesus Christ. He was worthy of their worship.

We hear the word “worship” and probably think of church. But worship is much more than a place on the church bulletin. When we worship God, we are responding to who he is and what he has done for each of us. Worship is like writing a thank you card. We acknowledge the gift that has been received and respond in gratitude to the giver. God has given the ultimate gift, one we could not possibly purchase for ourselves. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, God provided a way for us to be restored into relationship with him. God did this because of his love (John 3:16), and we are able to love in response (1 John 4:19). Through Jesus’ faithfulness in completing the work on the cross, we are enabled to live by faith, trusting that he has truly reconciled us with God. He is worthy of our responsive worship. And our worship should be authentic and free.

So think of how you worship God. Do you worship without inhibition or are you reserved? Giving of yourself to God means you give all you are. It’s time for worship to reflect the joy we have in our identity. Would people see your joy in the way you worship?

Lent 7: Scripture is key

24 Wednesday Feb 2021

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“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the
race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the
throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” — Hebrews 12:1-3

Have you ever heard a small part of a conversation and thought, “There’s a good story behind that.” We all experience something like this in our day to day lives as we encounter moments when we hear something, such as a snippet of a conversation, and quickly realize that there is a bigger story we need to be aware of. The same idea applies to Scripture. While it is helpful to pick out certain lines or passages to hold onto, we cannot afford to separate them from their context. To do so would only distort the scriptures.

I would bet many of you have heard scripture taken out of context. You may have unintentionally done it yourself. Have you ever had scripture used to hurt you?

Scripture is a weapon but it’s supposed to be a weapon against evil. Like anything, however, even scripture can be used to harm. Since God has given us this holy book, we must use it as a way to draw closer to God.

Here are a few suggestions for becoming more familiar with the context of Scripture in order that we may know how to respond:

  • Read extensively. Scholar and pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “Holy Scripture does not consist of individual passages; it is a unit and is intended to be used as such.” If you spend most of your time in the New Testament, try reading some of the Old Testament as well. If you are focusing on a few verses, be sure to read the whole chapter in which those verses are found. Having a picture of the whole helps us to better understand the particular. And remember—Jesus quoted the Old Testament throughout his life. There’s a reason for that.
  • Utilize a Study Bible or commentary. Resources like these can help shed light on the historical context of what was going on in the lives of the original audience. They can also help in pointing us towards other passages within Scripture that address the same theme. While not all commentaries are created equal, many of them can help us understand what the text is saying and think through ways of applying it to our lives.
  • Ask questions. While reading Scripture, ask these three basic questions: 1) What is happening in the text? 2) What is the significance or meaning? 3) How does it relate to my life?

Studying of the scriptures is the most important spiritual discipline you can engage in. If you truly wish to know the heart of God and how to live out your mission as a Christian, read your Bible. God is speaking still.

Lent 6: Scripture as our story

22 Monday Feb 2021

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“Now faith is the confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is
what the ancients were commended for.” —Hebrews 11:1-2


Have you ever done one of those DNA kits? The explosive growth of sites like Ancestry, LivingDNA and 23andMe is indicative of our desire as people to know our story. I have been working on my family tree for some time. We want to know where we came from, what trials our ancestors faced and their stories of endurance. We derive encouragement from the stories, both the good and the bad, as we strive to live up to their example or do better.


The author of Hebrews understood the power of remembering where you came from. Hebrews 11 seems like a hall of fame for people who lived by faith. The list goes on and on and it is quite the list? Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham. The names on the list would have been well-known by the original audience, as well as the stories of each person the author names. For those unfamiliar with the names, the author of Hebrews makes it clear that the people listed here did not have easy lives. They all encountered struggle and hardship. In the midst of their various difficulties though, they had faith, trusting that God was good and faithful to fulfill his promises. I encourage you to read it!


Like people drawing encouragement from the successes of their ancestors,m, so also the author of Hebrews intended this review to motivate the audience in their faith. Hebrews 12 begins, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Heb. 12:1).

While the stories in Hebrews 11 are encouraging, the author turns our focus toward Jesus Christ, who “For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:2). Eugene Peterson translates the next verse in the following way, “When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!” (Heb. 12:3, The Message).

I don’t know about you but that’s exactly what I have needed this past year. 2020 was a hard year for everyone. And for some this year hasn’t been any better. “When you find yourself flagging in your faith, go over that story again, Adam by Adam, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That was shoot adrenaline into your souls!”

What an exclamation! If you look at the list in Hebrews 11 you will see that each person struggled, faced opposition, was persecuted in someway, or was isolated. If there are times that you believe the people in the Bible are not relatable, it’s likely you have spent time in scripture. God used ordinary people with ordinary circumstances to teach us how to be extraordinary in our faith. Isn’t it time that each of us live into our identity as disciple?

Are you ready to take a bold step?

Lent Day 5 – Meditating

21 Sunday Feb 2021

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“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give
you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the
road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the
doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” — Deuteronomy 6:4-9

Have you ever experienced a really difficult situation? Sure you have! No one skates through life without difficulty from time to time. So how did you cope? Where do you turn when life begins to feel overwhelming?

There are many ways people deal with life. Some use unhealthy behavior like drug or alcohol abuse, inappropriate relationships, food, or other excessive actions. Some people cope by reaching out to friends or family, seeing a therapist, talking with a pastor. Something that is overlooked is meditation. I’m not talking about meditation as a form of avoidance or temporary relaxation technique. I’m talking about finding that quiet place to absorb the word of God. Pastor Richard Foster writes, “Eastern meditation is an attempt to empty the mind; Christian meditation is an attempt to fill the mind.”(1)

God often uses our meditation on his Word in Scripture to speak to us, encouraging us as we endure difficult situations, reminding us through his Word of his faithfulness and love, giving us hope for what is ahead. Reflecting on the Word is not simply for getting us through tough circumstances either. Meditating on God’s Word helps us to live continually in response to the living Word, Jesus Christ.


Here are a few suggested practices of meditating on God’s Word. As a reminder, we shouldn’t feel like we need to try all of the practices. Ultimately it is not about the practices, but about letting God do his work in growing our faith, hope and love as we focus on him and live in response to who he is and what he has done.

  • Memorization: Select a short passage to memorize. Allow the words to ruminate within you as you go throughout the day, repeating it several times to yourself. I’ve always struggled with this one but there are certain verses which I cling to and am thankful I can pull the words that have been embedded on my heart.
  • Pick a passage to read over or listen to several times. After the first reading, read it through again slowly, listening or watching for any words or phrases that stand out. Take note of the word or phrase and then read through the passage for a third time. How is God calling you to respond to his Word?
  • Verse-mapping: take a verse and map it out like you were taught in middle school English. Here’s a good place to start. https://kristycambron.com/verse-mapping-101-steps-to-study-the-bible-like-never-before/
  • As you read through Scripture, jot something down that stood out to you and consider reflecting on it with someone else this week. What is God placing upon your heart through His word as you begin the first full week of Lent? If you’re honest with yourself, He’s probably calling you to come out of that comfort zone of lukewarmness.

    (1) Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, 17.

Lent Day 4 – Dear Child of God,

21 Sunday Feb 2021

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“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” — 2 Timothy 3:16-17

When something is address to us or directly impacts us, we typically give it our attention. We read through mail and emails addressed to us from people we know, whereas we are likely to trash that which is mass-marketed. This past week, we’ve closely followed weather predictions in our immediate area but probably are not aware of weather conditions in other areas. There is so much information to be processed that we often have to prioritize what we focus our attention on.


2 Timothy begins with an address, “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, in keeping with the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus, to Timothy, my dear son” (2 Tim. 1:1-2a). At first glance, it may appear like we are not the ones being addressed and therefore we do not need to prioritize the message that follows. As Christians though, we affirm the canon of Scripture, the Old and New Testament together, as being the word of God. New Testament scholar N. T. Wright, commenting on 2 Timothy 3:16-17, describes what this meant for early Christians and still means today — “that the reason the scriptures were alive was because God had ‘breathed’ them in the first place, and the warmth and life of that creative breath was still present and powerful.”(1) In other words, the Holy Spirit, who empowered Paul to write those words to Timothy, is the SAME Holy Spirit who enlivens those words today in addressing us. Scripture is not just some ancient book; it’s God’s self-revelation addressed to us through the Holy Spirit.


Christian author and lawyer Justin Earely provides an application of what it might look like to see Scripture as God’s address to us. “Refusing to check the phone until after reading a passage of Scripture is a way of replacing the question ‘What do I need to do today?’ with a better one, ‘Who am I and who am I becoming?’ We have no stable identity outside of Jesus.”(2)

What identity do you cling to most? Do you see scripture as just an ancient guidebook or a living letter through which God still speaks to you? Has God spoken loudly to you, calling you into a relationship with Him? Did you say “yes?”

(1) N. T. Wright, Paul for Everyone: The Pastoral Letters, 119.

(2) Justin Earely, The Common Rule, 92.